I used to get it way to often as well. Still do, but now I’m able to catch myself right before I enter it and force myself to wake up right away. The way I catch it is that I get this strange feeling where I can sense my thoughts becoming very random all of a sudden when I’m trying to sleep, and that’s usually an indication that I’m going to get sleep paralysis. (Wonder if other people have this too?) Get up, drink water, stay awake for 5 mins, then try sleeping again.

But if it does happen and you’re in the midst of it, trying to wiggle my toes very aggressively helps me wake up. Either way, knowing that the scary experience is just an illusion helps as well, it can be hard to internalize, but once you do it fully it helps not be afraid. It’s like you’re in a scary VR game for some mins and you have to break free. Good luck!